Together with You
by Coffee-dono
Summary: Caskett. A developing story on the relationship of Rick and Kate, starting with Kate's trip with her father to France. How will they come together?
1. Chapter 1

**Together with You**

**Chapter Summary**: This is a short introductory chapter on the developing story between Richard Castle and Kate Beckett.

* * *

Rick Castle leaned back on his office chair, staring at the blinking cursor at the end of another paragraph in his Word program. The famous mystery writer side-glanced over to a picture frame affixed on the other side of his desk. Encased there was a picture of him and his partner, Kate Beckett. He reached out and took it, stroking the glass fondly with his thumb, smiling gently.

"You've only been gone two days, and I'm already missing you," he muttered to himself.

Kate had taken a few days leave for a vacation to France. As much as Rick insisted on coming along with her – especially after the LA incident a year ago – Kate had turned his offer down. She wanted to spend some bonding time with her father. Of course, Rick understood. After all, he had Alexis, which made understanding the situation a bit better. Who would want to crash a great father-daughter bonding time, abroad of all things, after all?

Rick figured Kate needed a break from work. Hell, she needed a break from him too. The writer allegedly admitted that he'd only be thinking up of alternate activities for the pair of them besides chasing murderers or spending the day with Ryan and Esposito. But more than anything, Rick wanted to give Kate the needed space. He'd shower her with affection the moment she came back… at least as much as the woman would allow him to.

A smile crept up his lips. "When you get back… I'll let you know how I feel," he promised himself, setting the picture frame back in its rightful place before turning his attention back to his laptop. Cracking his knuckles, he sat up a little straighter. "Okay, better get this done to meet my deadline," he said, poising his fingers over the keyboard for a few moments. Unable to think of anything, he pressed the Control and S to save his work so far and rolled back and got to his feet. "Hmm, I think I'll get myself some wine first~" he said instead, grinning childishly and tiptoeing off to cross his house to the kitchen to pop open a bottle for himself before he got back to writing his draft.

**TBC**


	2. Chapter 2

**Together with You**

**Chapter Summary:** Kate is in France with her father. Will she able to make heads or tails of what's going on in her head?

* * *

It had been a few days after she had been discharged from the hospital. Their new captain advised strongly that she took a break for just a few more days. Of course Kate had declined but Captain Gates gave her a choice between a suspension and this trip, and she certainly didn't want this on the record.

It was her father that had ultimately convinced her to just follow the 'suggestion' and scheduled a week-long trip to the city of love.

It was ironic really…that after just a few days of breaking up with her previous boyfriend she went to a city that reminded her of all the things they had done together…that and Castle.

Castle…who had professed his love during that time when Kate thought that she was going to cross over.

Looking out the window of the café where she and her father were having some morning coffee, she recalled his pained face when she had told him that she couldn't remember a thing about the shooting. She had said that she remembered nothing at all…but that was a blatant lie; a lie that would allow her to escape even for just a little while; escape from the reality of life that had been presented to her.

Whatever she did she just couldn't get the look of disbelief and pain that Castle had out of her mind. She wondered why, thinking long and hard during her recovery….but nothing was coming to her. It might have been due to their partnership...or whatever it may be now after she practically crushed his supposed partner in the worst way possible.

She sighed and took a sip of her coffee.

"Everything alright, Katie?" her father asked, just in time as she snapped out of her musing.

"Yeah…everything's alright, Dad," she assured her father as she smiled.

**TBC**


	3. Chapter 3

**Together with You**

**Chapter Summary**: Rick's deadline for his manuscript was coming fast. But he wouldn't be Rick Castle if he stayed on track, would he?

* * *

Admittedly, Rick had accomplished a few pages since his brooding session several days ago. He was getting to his quota, but there was just so much patience you could muster if all you did for nearly 20 hours was staring at a Word program and type on end a scene reeling from your head.

Even mystery writers needed a break, right?

Rick took a glance at his desk calendar. On it, two dates were encircled – the end of the week was when Kate would be returning from France; tomorrow was the deadline Gina gave him for the draft of his manuscript. "Am I really going to procrastinate this until the last minute?" he thought out loud to himself, glancing at the blinking cursor. Saving his work so far, he pushed back from the desk and scrambled out of his office, skidding to a stop just in front of the fridge. "I can afford that~" he told himself with a grin, popping open the fridge to help himself to the sweets there.

And sitting in the middle rack was a plate of left-over chocolate cake Alexis had brought home from her party last night. "Score!" Rick cheered to himself, looking around cautiously for a moment before reaching out to snatch it. Kicking the fridge closed, he walked around the island counter while scooping up a fork from one of the drawers as he eased himself onto a chair. "Hello sugar frosting," he greeted the pastry as he happily indulged himself.

He needed to stay away from the office. Coming up with a closing scene for his next book, _Frozen Heat_, was still a work-in-progress. He just needed one last idea. So he thought stuffing himself with cake would jog his mind to function.

At least it spared him the trouble of having to think of other things… at least for the time being.

**TBC**


	4. Chapter 4

**Together with You**

**Chapter Summary**: Gina wanted to give Rick some space, she really did. There really are just some times that she's pushed to her limit just like during their marriage.

* * *

Gina sighed as she sipped her wine. It was already high noon and there was still no news from Rick whose deadline was yesterday.

They had talked about it before and Rick's only retort was you couldn't rush genius. Of course you couldn't rush genius but Gina highly doubted that Rick had it. He was creative, she'd give him that.

Very creative, yes. Genius? Questionable.

He had the mind and actions of a 12-year old and she was sure that if she asked Agent Beckett, Rick's current muse for his books, the detective would wholeheartedly agree.

Then she realized….Agent Beckett. Maybe that's the reason why Rick was lacking so much these days. His muse was in another country recovering from an event that wasn't less than traumatic. The girl needed her space, Gina admitted, especially after the stunt that that unknown assassin pulled.

While thinking about that, she realized that another factor might also be that certain incident. Beckett lost her memories after the shooting, or so Rick told her. The writer was crushed, more crushed than that time when Alexis said she wanted to go to camp alone for the first time, and that was really something.

She sighed again and took another sip of her wine.

Well then, she supposed she could give Rick a few more minutes before she came barging in. After all, there was a lot on his plate aside from the deadline.

**TBC**


	5. Chapter 5

**Together with You**

**Chapter Summary**: It was the day when Kate returned from her trip to France, and Rick was still a paragraph away from finishing his draft. He was already three days late on his deadline with Gina, so it wasn't all that surprising that he was paid a visit for his procrastinating.

* * *

Rick was muttering some dialogues with himself using two action figures he had pulled out from his chest – Hawkeye and Black Widow from the Avengers.

"If you couldn't remember, why not just tell me?" he asked in a manly voice, moving Hawkeye appropriately.

"I just wasn't ready yet. We can't just settle down just like that!" Rick said in a slightly higher octave to roleplay Black Widow.

"Richard Castle, aren't you too old to be playing with those things?" his mother Martha reprimanded as she walked into the office.

"It's for my book mother. I'm relaying a scene in my head and see how it unfolds," Rick defended, straightening up as he set down the action figures.

"The deadline of which was three days ago. What exactly is preventing you from finishing it?" Martha asked.

"Writer's block," Rick answered immediately.

"Well dear, whatever the case may be, you have a guest at the door," Martha said with a wave of her hand as she handed her son some envelopes from the mail.

Rick visibly frowned as he half-rose from his seat. "A guest?" he wondered out loud, a bit anxious as he moved around his desk and moved to answer the door. Pulling it open, he jumped back in a little shriek. "Gaaah!" he exclaimed for good measure as he quickly walked away, swinging the door closed on their guest.

"Richard!" Martha scolded again, moving to pull the door open again. "I'm so sorry Gina," she apologized.

"No worries Martha," Gina said with a smile as she stepped inside and glanced pointedly at Rick who had moved towards the kitchen. "I just came to check up on your progress. And hopefully pick up my promised manuscript," she said in a business tone.

"You'll get it when it's done," Rick grumbled, pulling out a carton of juice from the fridge.

"Rick, I still need to proof-read it," Gina remarked.

"And you can't rush-"

"Genius, I know," Gina interjected immediately, walking up to the counter and set her back down on none of the chairs. "But three days overdue, Rick? How much more do you need to write before you're done?" she asked.

Rick stared blankly at his drink as he swirled it randomly, tracing a circle with his glass. "A paragraph," he answered.

"What?" Gina shrieked, slamming her hands on the counter. "Then finish it already!"

"I can't!"

"Why not?"

"I don't know how to end it…" Rick answered quietly, glancing up at Gina.

Gina returned his gaze and sighed before walking up to him, took the glass and set it down on the island counter and grabbed his wrist, pulling him back to the office.

"H-Hey! Let go!" Rick complained.

Gina sat him down on his chair and fired up his laptop. "You're going to sit here and finish that last paragraph so I can get a copy and actually do my job," she insisted.

"Didn't you hear me? I can't!" Rick insisted.

"Do you want to have this on your shoulders when Agent Beckett arrives?" Gina challenged, pointing at his desk calendar for emphasis.

Rick quieted down and glanced at the screen of his laptop, awoken from its sleep after he stared at it for half an hour two hours ago trying to come up with a closing paragraph but to no avail. "Alright," he finally said, pulling himself closer to the desk. "I'll finish it now," he promised, stealing a glance over to the picture of him and Kate before he stared at his laptop for a while before his fingers began to type up a storm.

It took the mystery writer 20 minutes to finish the paragraph and make the necessary edits before glancing at Gina, outstretching an arm towards her. "USB," he requested.

"About time," Gina said, handing him the device to put a copy of his manuscript into for her own review. Once it was safely removed and handed back to her, she placed it back into her bag. "I'll email you my comments and edits," she said before finally leaving.

Rick sighed and saved his work before leaning back on his chair, relieved that the stress was over. But his phone suddenly decided to jostle him back up as it vibrated violently inside his pants pocket. Retrieving it, he glanced at the screen as his eyes widened.

It was a name he wasn't expecting to call him… at least this early.

It was Kate. With shaky hands, Rick's thumb hovered over the green button to accept the call, holding the phone up to his ear when the call pushed through.

"Hello?"

**TBC**


	6. Chapter 6

**Together with You**

**Chapter Summary**: Kate is back from France. What will she do first? Will Castle comply?

* * *

She was wondering at first, if she should call him. After all…it had only been a few hours since her plane landed and the first thing she did after getting a breather was go to the nearest coffee shop and call Castle.

Fiddling with her phone for a few minutes, she took a deep breath and speed-dialed the man and placed the phone by her ear and waited for him to answer the call.

"_**Hello?"**_

Kate smiled. That was the voice she'd wanted to hear. "Castle?" she asked, making sure that he was listening.

"_**Beckett."**_

"Hey, so I was wondering if you'd be interested in coming at…." She paused and looked behind her at the street signs. "…corner 6th and 15th. The coffee shop that's there."

"_**Come whe—w-wait! You're back in New York?"**_

Kate chuckled at this response. Same old Castle. "Well I wouldn't be asking you to come here if I wasn't here, right?" she asked him teasingly. She swore Castle can be adorable sometimes.

"_**I thought….I thought you wouldn't be back until tonight at the latest."**_

Kate did a double take at this and checked the date on her watch. "…I told you I'd be back last night. Friday remember?" she asked him.

"_**But it's Friday now and you said you'd be back tonight!"**_

Ah. There we go. There was the problem. "It's Saturday, Castle," she said pointedly.

"_**No it's not!" **_came the indignant retort.

Kate sighed. "Take a moment to check your phone…or better yet, ask Alexis," she said before hearing Castle shuffle off and ask his daughter. The words weren't clear but the tone of disbelief and disappointment was prominent in Alexis' voice.

"_**Saturday…right," **_Castle finally confirmed.

The detective nodded. Not that Castle would be able to see that she was. "Mhmm. So you coming or what?" she asked him.

"_**I'll…think about it…" **_

Well that was a surprise. Castle was usually enthusiastic when it came to the two of them meeting both in and outside work. She wondered if there was anything wrong. "Well…okay…" she said carefully, trying to mask her disappointment.

A pause was then heard on the line and Castle's voice sounded off again.

"_**I'll be there."**_

'_That was quick,'_ she thought to herself but she felt her disappointment practically disappear. "I'll see you then," she told him before moving to end the call.

She swore though that before she pressed the red button she heard Castle's voice going "Kaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaate!"

**TBC**


	7. Chapter 7

**Together with You**

Chapter Summary: Rick couldn't deny it. He needed to see her. If anything, Kate Beckett was the only thing on his mind. Screw the hurt; all he needed was her.

S/N: Of course, Tiny Tower belongs to Nimblebit, but since Philip and I enjoy the game it wouldn't hurt to use it. Count on Castle to be so childish to cope.

* * *

Just moments ago, Rick had bolted out the door as soon as he ended his call with Kate. He was in too much of a rush to recall much of the exchange he had with Kate over the phone. Call him giddy or outright aloof, but all he had on his mind had the name Kate Beckett written all over it.

Rick climbed onto the elevator and jammed his thumb to the 'G' button to take him down to the ground floor. As the doors slid closed and the mechanism took him down the building, the writer was tapping his foot impatiently. Why were these things even invented if they couldn't be faster? Sometimes he wished its speed matched that of the Infini-lift Lightspeed elevator on the Tiny Tower game on his iPhone. '_That would be fun~'_ he thought to himself with a chuckle.

In an attempt to cheer up her father, Alexis had introduced him to this simulation game. She even had to kill the urge of Rick to waste money buying Towerbuxes just to get the fastest elevator. _'Just save for it!'_ she scolded. Of course, Rick didn't listen and on impulse, bought it anyway and was having a fun time sending bitizens to certain floors. The price he paid however, resulted in Alexis snubbing him for 2 days before he made it up to her with a Dairy Queen bribe.

All this, of course, was just an attempt to steer attention away from moping; at least it kept Rick considerably distracted before he came back to Earth and realized that Kate was trying to wheedle back into his life. He desired it, but he never expected it. He wasn't going to waste this chance.

The elevator sounded a 'ding' to indicate that it had arrived at the ground floor, and the novelist stepped out hastily just as the doors began to part, side-stepping in time before he collided with one of the residents. "Sorry!" he cried out hastily before regaining his footing and bolted for the front door and out of the apartment building.

As he looked both ways crossing the street, all Rick ever thought about now was how to greet her. She had been gone for several months and the novelist had almost forgotten how to begin a conversation without walking up to her and offering a cup of coffee. They were meeting at a coffee shop for Christ's sake.

_'Nah, I'll just wing it,'_ he concluded. As was his usual battle plan. All he cared about was seeing her again. This meeting was long overdue, after all.


	8. Chapter 8

**Together with You**

Chapter Summary: Waiting for Rick to arrive, Kate patiently waits, plotting on how to carry her next plan of action out.

* * *

Not even Lanie knew she was back. Heck, not even the Javin pair -Ryan and Esposito- knew that she had returned. Kate was really surprised that no one decided to check on her yet since she did announce that she was supposed to be back by now.

Shrugging, she supposed they thought she was just resting a bit more before going back to work. Technically they were right, though. She was taking a break just not the one they probably thought about.

Looking into her half-empty coffee cup and untouched cake slice, Kate wondered what time Rick Castle would arrive and wondered how in the world they would start talking. They always started with Castle handing her coffee but now that they were in a coffee shop things change in dynamics, she supposed.

Chuckling to herself as she thought of 50 different scenarios that Castle would break the ice and possibly make a fool of himself, Kate reached for her coffee and decided to finish it.

_'Okay, Castle, let's make an opening for you,' _she thought before going off to order a morning smoothie that she could have in the meantime.

Checking the clock that was being displayed beside a lamp post, she wondered just when the author would get there.

And maybe, try and figure out which of the 50 scenarios would play out once he does get there.


	9. Chapter 9

**Together with You**

Chapter Summary: Rick gets lost on the way to the coffee shop where he and Kate would be meeting.

* * *

Rick had crossed several streets, at times nearly getting run over by a passing taxi (the drivers of whom gladly honked their horns to audibly reprimand the novelist. When had he forgotten his road crossing etiquette? And then he remembered as he was stopped by a red crossing light. He was too eager to see her; too eager to see Kate; too excited like the little school boy he was that she was back from the other part of the world.

What would they talk about? How would the conversation even lift off? Did she look any different? Still beautiful for sure, but would her hair be short like the first time they met? Or would it be long as he last remembered? He was anxious; so anxious he had mindlessly attempted to cross again.

Thankfully one of the pedestrians pulled him back in time before his foot got run over. _'I'm an absolute mess,'_ he thought to himself with a silly grin plastered on his face. Luckily he didn't seem to care. He was going to see Kate. And that was what was important; and the only thing that mattered to Rick at this point.

When the pedestrian light had turned to green, Rick crossed and walked briskly. Living in Manhattan for most of his life, it was child's play to know where he was going.

"What should we talk about?" he thought out loud, striking a thinking pose as he stroked his chin. And without realizing it, he spawned a dual-personality and started debating inwardly with himself.

_Should I mention how much I missed her?_ That just makes me sound cheesy and needy. _That I'm done with my third Nikki Heat novel?_ She's secretly a follower of my works anyway and probably already reserved a copy. _Will I pull a tantrum and complain that she never called?_ Well, she said she needed time to herself. I didn't want to push her._ Yeah right. You were bitter and moped for days until you got an email from her saying she was in France with her father._ Yeah, but that didn't last long!

In the midst of his inner debate, Rick realized that he had veered out of the path he had told his feet to go to and found himself just a little lost. He frowned. "Well... That's fun," he said sardonically, laughing nervously and tried to regain his bearings and figure out where he was.

_'Should I call her and tell her the news?'_ he wondered to himself, fishing out his iPhone and looked at the screen for a while as soon as he swiped to wake it up from its sleep mode. Rick considered it. He really did. But he suddenly spotted a building that he recognized to be near the coffee shop and bustled towards it. He was back on track. He quickly stuffed his phone back into his pocket and navigated his way around using some street cues before finally seeing the coffee shop in the distance.

_'Time for that much awaited reunion, Kate Beckett,'_ he thought firmly, running his fingers through his hair in an attempt to tame it and look his best for her.

**TBC**


	10. Chapter 10

**Together With You**

Chapter Summary: Kate continues to wait.

* * *

Kate checked her watch and frowned when he realized that Castle was taking much longer than he was supposed to. She had estimated the time before and had come to a conclusion that it wouldn't take more than fifteen minutes for the writer to get there after their last conversation. That's already giving leeway to pedestrian stoplights and being stopped by a fan.

But now, half an hour had already passed and there was still no sign of Castle. Kate was starting to wonder if the author had gotten into more trouble than usual. _'Maybe I should call for backup...'_ she thought before realizing how silly it sounded. It was as if they were on one of their undercover gigs and that was definitely not the case.

Sighing, she put down her empty glass. She had finished her shake already and not to mention was already halfway through the book she was reading: a leather-bound copy of Rick's books mind you. She made it that way so that the other wouldn't realize what exactly she was reading whenever he would notice it. It was a smart move, in Kate's opinion, as long as Castle didn't bother to read things from behind her. Well if he did do that she could always slam the book shut and prayed that she remembered what page she was on.

Thinking to herself, she then realized that there was another way she could find out where Castle was. Pulling out her phone from her bag, she dialed a number and placed the phone by her ear.

"Hey, Alexis~" she greeted.

_"Hey there, Detective! Sorry if Dad is taking so long, he got lost."_

Kate blinked. "Lost? How in the world do you get lost in coming here from your place?"

_"He spaced out. And trust me, that's a normal thing."_

Huh. That was interesting.

_"Well anyway, he's already near. A five minute walk since he finally figured out where he was."_

"Okay. Thank you, Alexis," Kate said with a smile. "I'll be waiting for your call on your next available open schedule for that shopping trip then."

Alexis let out a squeal of happiness at this. _"I'm counting on that, Detective Beckett! I'll call you again real soon!"_

"Thanks," Kate said before hearing Alexis cut the line off. She glanced down the street and spotted the familiar writer heading towards the shop.

She chuckled inwardly.

"Rick Castle, you have no idea how predictable you are to some..." she said in amusement.

**TBC**


	11. Chapter 11

**Together with You**

Chapter Summary: The much awaited reunion between Castle and Beckett.

S/N: Yeah so this is as far as I could manage since I couldn't figure out how to end this chapter while letting you expect an end. Philip thinks it's a good ending too. If anything, I'm up to continuing this story but for now this might be the last chapter in the series.

If you're interested to read more intimacy (like the evening after their dinner date maybe? ;) ) I can type up a chapter on that since I'm in a good Caskett mood after seeing New York. So maybe after some reviews on this chapter voicing out your opinion, I'll consider it. Otherwise, this will be it for this story.

* * *

"Sorry I'm late!" was the first thing Rick Castle had called out. He grinned as he simultaneously panted to catch his breath, bringing a hand up in an A-OK gesture before both hands dropped down to his thighs.

Once he had regained his steady breathing, Rick straightened up and made a quick scan of the table before zoning in on the empty chair across Kate.

"Hey Castle," Kate greeted, beaming as she got to her feet and rounded the table, pulling Rick into a quick embrace.

Rick inwardly squealed in delight as he wrapped his arms and returned the embrace. Outwardly, he kept it cool. "Nice to finally see you again after all these months, Kate," he pointed out.

Kate pulled away and smiled before retaking her seat.

Rick would have been an idiot to not assume it was an invite for him to sit down in the remaining chair at the table. And so he sat. For a while, he wondered how things were going to continue from there. The writer took a glance down at the table, as if to examine the array of items that included: a coffee cup, a glass that he assumed contained a smoothie and a leather-bound book.

_'Wonder what that book is,'_ the writer wondered before he looked up at Kate. She was beautiful as usual. Just as he remembered her. Rick had been considering how to start the conversation, but he fell flat. So instead, he started simple.

"How was Paris?" he said plainly, giving her a smile.

"Just like how people said it would be. Beautiful," Kate answered as she tilted her head to the side in thought. "Though there were more people than I originally thought. It was like Honeymoons everywhere," she said before chuckling.

Rick nodded ruefully. "Well, never underestimate the city of love," he said before he paused and looked away awkwardly. Was it safe to talk about love? He didn't want to get ahead of himself, so he switched topics before he was tempted to talk about it. "Whatcha reading?" he asked, pointing to the unmarked book.

Kate glanced down at her book and drew it closer to her along the table. "Nothing important," she lied.

"Well, would you consider my books to be important to you?" Rick wondered.

The homicide detective paused for a moment, considering if Rick Castle had just asked her a trick question. Just to be safe, she decided to thread cautiously. She leaned back on her seat, keeping a tight grip on the spine of the book for good measure. "Why do you ask?"

Rick smiled, looking like a happy boy on Christmas morning. He felt like he could get the better of her this time, provided he used the right words. "Because regardless what you answer, I'm 99% sure that you're reading one of my books~ You never admitted to reading it before until I saw you sneaking a peak at 'Heat Wave' in the bathroom all those years ago. Not to mention you lining up for my book signings," he said proudly.

Richard Castle was showing prowess in the form of keeping stock of her keen interest in his books. Kate wondered briefly if she should have given things more pause and denied it. But his ability to tell a story with a pen - okay, with a laptop - was undeniably exciting. And to know that he had used her as a muse for the character of Nikki Heat was sweet; she'd forgive him for running away with his own ideas of pairing her up to his own counterpart Jameson Rook.

Despite all these facts, Kate was at a loss for words. She simply resigned to smiling and held up the leather bound book, presenting the spine that read "Heat Rises". This, of course, caused Rick to grin triumphantly.

"Glad to know you're still a supportive fan," Rick said teasingly.

"I wouldn't skip any of your books even if I tried," Kate remarked before she could stop herself.

Rick's features softened and nodded gratefully. He reached out and grabbed her hand, squeezing it in silent thanks.

That was a sufficient ice breaker. Things didn't feel as awkward as Kate - or Rick - anticipated. The homicide detective slid the book over. "Mind if you signed it?" she asked sheepishly.

The novelist was stunned before decided not to press the matter. He pulled the book towards him and produced a Sharpie from his pocket, opening the book to the first page and inked in his signature. "In my version of this meeting, you'd be in line at one of my book signings with a copy of this book," Rick shared.

Kate chuckled. "That was my alternative actually," she admitted, taking her book back gratefully.

Rick nodded in understanding. "So... have you gone back to work yet?" he asked.

Kate shook her head as a response. "I will come Monday morning."

"Have you told anyone?"

"Nope."

"So how about some dinner?" Rick asked before he could stop himself.

Kate paused and actually considered this. She didn't have any other plans in mind, and she had been dying to spend more time with him. "Dinner... sounds great," she finally answered. "What place did you have in mind?"

"Some Italian place in the Upper West area on 68th called Il Violino," Rick answered.

"You've done a bit of sightseeing while I was away I see," Kate teased.

"Only because I was bored," Rick fired back with a hearty laugh. They both calmed down before they simultaneously reached out and held each other's hands. "Welcome back Kate," Rick said, a tone of sincerity in his voice.

Kate smiled a genuine smile. "Great to be back Rick," she said in reply.


End file.
